Tech giant Apple is reportedly planning to launch a new credit card with investment bank Goldman Sachs that would link users to new smart features on the iPhone.
First reported by the Wall Street Journal, it is understood from unnamed sources that the new joint credit card will be tested with employees of both companies before an official launch later this year.
Apple and Goldman Sachs, who both want to broaden revenues from their traditional core products and services, intend to attract consumers by offering new features on Apple’s Wallet app.
These are designed to help iPhone users better manage their money, such as enabling them to set spending limits, track rewards and manage their balances.
Some of the features could include sending notifications to users about their spending habits, such as flagging up an unusually high bills, or using graphics similar to Apple’s fitness-tracking app where visual rings close as users hit daily targets.
According to the Journal, the initiative represents a “major push” by Apple “into the financial lives of hundreds of millions of iPhone users”, while Goldman Sachs would be able to extend its reach into retail banking and to target Apple’s young, digitally savvy customers.
Goldman has already launched an online consumer bank called Marcus, which generated $35bn in deposits last year, but its partnership with Apple would be its first credit card.
It has set aside $200m to support the project, the Journal’s sources revealed, and this will help finance a network of customer support call centres in America as well as a new internal system to handle payments.
The new card will use Mastercard’s payment network, the second largest in the US after Visa, and it is expected that cardholders will earn around 2% cashback on purchases, with potentially more on Apple products and services.
And by having its own credit card, Apple is expected to gain a bigger slice of “swipe fees”, although the Journal cautioned that the company risks angering banks whose cards account for the bulk of transactions run through Apple Pay.
First reported by the Wall Street Journal, it is understood from unnamed sources that the new joint credit card will be tested with employees of both companies before an official launch later this year.
Apple and Goldman Sachs, who both want to broaden revenues from their traditional core products and services, intend to attract consumers by offering new features on Apple’s Wallet app.
These are designed to help iPhone users better manage their money, such as enabling them to set spending limits, track rewards and manage their balances.
Some of the features could include sending notifications to users about their spending habits, such as flagging up an unusually high bills, or using graphics similar to Apple’s fitness-tracking app where visual rings close as users hit daily targets.
According to the Journal, the initiative represents a “major push” by Apple “into the financial lives of hundreds of millions of iPhone users”, while Goldman Sachs would be able to extend its reach into retail banking and to target Apple’s young, digitally savvy customers.
Goldman has already launched an online consumer bank called Marcus, which generated $35bn in deposits last year, but its partnership with Apple would be its first credit card.
It has set aside $200m to support the project, the Journal’s sources revealed, and this will help finance a network of customer support call centres in America as well as a new internal system to handle payments.
The new card will use Mastercard’s payment network, the second largest in the US after Visa, and it is expected that cardholders will earn around 2% cashback on purchases, with potentially more on Apple products and services.
And by having its own credit card, Apple is expected to gain a bigger slice of “swipe fees”, although the Journal cautioned that the company risks angering banks whose cards account for the bulk of transactions run through Apple Pay.
Sourced from Wall Street Journal; additional content by WARC staff
